T206 American Beauty backs, and trim

[FrankWakefield]

For almost 40 years I 'knew' that the AB cards were not as wide as the other cards, because the AB cigarette packages were narrower, and that the cards served an extra purpose of maintaining package shape and protecting the contents. A few years ago some folks suggested that the AB packs were not narrower, and that a normal size card would have fit in the packs. Scans were posted that convinced me of this. Ted Z has posted a scan of an AB pack with an AB card half out of it, and it is easy to see that the card seems unduly narrow for that package; it is in the "Please Show Your Backs & Packs" thread.

So I still know that most AB cards are narrower. This was an intentional cut. At this point I'm unsure why that is, but the narrower packaging doesn't seem credible to me anymore. I do know that if you spread a bunch of white border cards out on a table, and study them, a discerning eye can pick out the AB cards just by looking at the fronts.